1. Field
The present invention relates generally to communications systems, and, particularly, to communications systems including inflatable antennas, and, more particularly, to automatically deployable communications systems including inflatable antennas.
2. Description of the Problem and Related Art
Inflatable antennas have shown advantages over their more rigid counterparts in that inflatable version are light weight and more portable. One such inflatable antenna was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,963,315, to Gierow, et al. These inflatable antennas have demonstrated particularly responsive to shortcomings found in the prior art relating to rapid deployment and ease of operation, especially in remote areas and emergency scenarios, for example, after a natural disaster occurs.
To improve upon the numerous benefits of inflatable antennas, the present disclosure provides a self-contained system, housed in a portable case, which allows automatic deployment of the antenna with little-to-no user action necessary.